I Believe Environmental Education Is For Everyone
The Blossoming of Teachings by Tatiana
I'm a proud Colombiana. It’s a big part of my identity, even if I wasn't born there. I feel lucky to have grown up in Miami, Florida – and still live here to this day – because Miami connects me to my cultura.
There’s an overlap of being from Miami and having heritage in Colombia. My version of overlap? Tropical plants that surround me.
It's such a cool intersection to not only see diverse Latinx cultures, but also to immerse myself in plant life. I wouldn’t say my path into this work was traditional.
My entire familia has careers in either the medical or financial field, so I was the odd one out. From a young age, I was always in awe of how the natural world works. My favorite books to read were children’s biology encyclopedias.
I’d spend every weekend at the local park or beach staring up into the sky or digging in the sand, warmed by the rays from el sol.
I would also watch Bill Nye or David Attenborough on TV and loved how they made science so fun and interesting. It wasn’t until I was older that I realized I never saw anyone who looked or sounded like me doing that kind of work, so I wanted to pave my own way into science education.
One of my earliest memories with plants and the environment is rooted in my elementary school’s science club. In fifth grade, I had the opportunity to work on our school’s first garden. Growing up in suburban Miami, I had never gotten my hands in the soil so intensely, and that feeling – as well as the smell of mulch – will forever be in my core memorias.
That experience was so pivotal in my personal and professional development that it sparked my environmental education business – Teachings by Tatiana.
My mission is for Teachings by Tatiana to reach learners of all ages and interest levels in my comunidad. Because I also speak Español, my focus with Teachings by Tatiana is to reach Spanish-speaking populations with care. In Miami, so many people have their backgrounds from other countries.
A lot of that life exists in this city, so I like to incorporate cultural components – like traditions, customs, and culture of different Latin American countries – into the environmental education I teach.
My guiding light in this work is knowing that regardless of the advances humans make over time, we’re always going to be dependent on natural resources to eat, breathe, and take care of ourselves.
At times, humans need to reconnect to the ancestral knowledge that may have been lost.
-Tatiana
Show Up for Yourself
How many times have you had to say, “no” because of travel costs? Maybe you didn’t check out that amazing museum because it was too far away. Maybe the admission fee to that botanical garden stopped you from viewing what it had to offer.
Maybe you’ve been part of environmental education activities, but it lacked cultural sensitivity.
That ends today. You deserve to enjoy – and learn – about the world’s natural beauty.
The beauty that makes you think, “I can appreciate and understand more about my natural environment.”
It’s time to look closely at things like sap, native flowers, or the grain in trees. It’s time to lie down and just look up at the light blue sky.
It’s time to feel alive again with Teachings by Tatiana.
Disconnect to Heal
It’s no lie that since the mid 2000’s, phones and social media took over our natural ways of being.
Remember the days when we played outside instead of staring at a screen?
Me too.
But here’s the thing…
You can still have a meaningful relationship with nature by weaving it into your everyday life.
Prune one branch, and the plant puts up a different shoot.
Disturb a patch of soil, and certain plants colonize it.
Plant a garden, and it’ll gradually shift and change over time.
Follow one plant for years and watch how it grows and survives through the seasons – all by just looking out your window.
These are only a glimpse of moments you can learn with Teachings by Tatiana.
You’ll understand how you can use plants in your everyday life – or even gain confianza when interacting with nature outside.
The Key to Balance
There’s no way around it.
With the rising cost of living and economic pressures, maybe you’re feeling forced to work longer hours.
Spending more time under fluorescent lights probably limits your time and energy for connecting with the environment.
Maybe you’re frustrated with the lack of equitable access to free, fulfilling community spaces.
Spaces where you can engage with nature and bond with los amigxs. There’s a way around this though…
What if I said you could prioritize time outside, even with the financial and time constraints you face?
Here’s where balance comes in. You get off work and you’re tired.
But, I can go to you and teach wherever you want me to be…in Miami of course. Even if you’re not near a park or garden, we can make it work because nature is everywhere! You just have to know what to look for.
By hanging out with Teachings by Tatiana, we can reduce those barriers and bring you one step closer to nature education.
